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Preventing Suicide Among Gay and Bisexual Men

Event Date:

30 May 2017, 13:00 EDT

Suicide is the ninth leading cause of death among Canadians, responsible for nearly 4000 deaths each year. While everyone is susceptible to the feelings of hopelessness and despair that precede suicide, gay and bisexual men are 4 times more likely to attempt suicide in their lifetime than heterosexual men. Moreover, the suicide rate among gay and bisexual in Canada is comparable to the current death toll from HIV/AIDS.

Suicide is preventable. However, we still have much to learn about why gay and bisexual men consider suicide and the best way to support men struggling with suicidal thoughts. In this webinar, Dr. Olivier Ferlatte from the Men’s Health research program at the University of British Columbia and Dr. Travis Salway from the BC Centre for Disease Control will present recent findings from Canadian research on this urgent public health issue.

Dr. Olivier Ferlatte is a post-doctoral research fellow with the men’s health research program at the School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia and the director of the Still here project (www.stillhereproject.ca), a photo voice project featuring LGBTQ individuals affected by suicide.

Dr. Travis Salway is a social epidemiologist whose research focuses on health inequities experienced by lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people. He is currently doing a postdoctoral research fellowship at the UBC School of Population and Public Health and the BC Centre for Disease Control, where he investigates health services solutions to elevated rates of depression, anxiety, suicide ideation, and substance use among LGB Canadians.

If you or someone you know might be at risk of suicide, there is help. Visit http://suicideprevention.ca to find a crisis center in your province or territory.

Please note that some content on this website contains language, information and images related to sexuality and drug use, and may not be intended for people of all ages. CATIE ensures that these resources, developed to help prevent the transmission of HIV, hepatitis C and other infections, are written and reviewed by health experts for content accuracy.